Improvement in sewing-machine fob button-holes



l2 Sheets-Sheet l, Hl E. REYNOLDS.

l Sewing Machine. No. 79,393. ,Patented1une3o,186.

2 Sheets'-Sheet 2. H. E. REYNOLDS.

Sewing Machine.

Patented June 3o, 1868.

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Letters Patent Nor 19,393, dated June 30, 1868.

IMPROVEMENT IN SEWING-MACHINE FOR BUTTON-HOLES. .y

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TO LL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: I

Be it linown that I, HENRY E. REYNOLDS, of the city and county of`Bristol, and State of Rhode Island, have invented a new und improved Button-HoleSewing Machine; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which `will enable those skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

The object I have in view in this invention is to furnish a machine by which button-holes in clothing may be worked and completed with. the same facility with which any other hind of sowing is done on the same garments, and in doing this I have succeeded in forming, by machinery, the ordinary hand button-hole stitch, which it is conceded is the best which has ever been discovered for the purpose. .And my invention consists in such a construction and arrangement of parts as enables me to accomplishthe object in view, as will be hereinafter more fully described.

Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of the machine', the section being throughthe line :r :r of iig. 2.

Figure 2 is a sectional end elevation, the section being through the line y y of iig. 1.

Figure', Sheet II, is a section through the line z z of fig. 2.

On Sheet II there are anumber of other views, showing in detail the different parts ofthe machine, which parts will be referred to hereafter.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

This machine does not sew from a spool, but from a single thread, of the length required for the buttonhole, or the same as by hand.

It operates with an upper and n. lower needle, which needles have slotted or open eyes, and work in a per-i.

pendicular position,but the upper needle only goes through the cloth.

Motion is imparted to the machine from a revolving horizontal shaft, marked A.

B is a driving-gear wheel on this shaft,ithe hub of which wheel is acam, marked C, a. cross-section of which is seen on Sheet II, at Figure 4, through the line 1 1 of iig. 1.

This cam gives the lower needle its up and down motion through the traversing-roll and arm seen at a, figs. 1 and 3. The arm, carrying the needle-bar with it, is thrown up by the cam, and depressed, to follow the .surface of said cam, by a spiral spring, a'

The bar of the lower needle has a fine coggd pinionswheel upon it, a sectional view of which is seen at b, figs. 1,'2, and 3. l

D is a rack,- which engages witlrthis pinion, which action serves to turn or partially rotate the lower needle.

A detached A,view of this ruck and p inion is seen in iig. 5, on an enlarged scale. Tho rack D is attached to an armpE, which arm has a friction-roll upo'n its end, which is held in contact with the cam F on` the main shaft A, by :i spiral spring, d.

There is another cam on the-main shaft, marked G, by whichthe up and down motion of the upper needle is caused.

Il is a vertical rod, upon the lower end ofwhich there is a roll, z', which is held in contact with the cam G by the spring f. This odfpasses through a slot in the table, and is notched to receive the spring f, which bears against thel underside of .the table, and against a shoulder formed by the notch in the rod.

The rod H connects with a lever, J, at lc, and imparts vertical motion to the needle-bar by a jointed iingerconnection, as seen in tig. 3 at Z.

m. is a sleeve, which contains and supports the upper needle-bar n. This upper needleis turned or partially rotated by an oblique groove in the bar, an enlarged view of which bar and groove is seen in Figure 6, Sheet I.

o is a 'iix'edpoint or fingerLwhieh enters the groove in the needle-bar, and causes the partial rotation back and forth as the needle rises and falls.

Both needles have a lateral or horizontal motion for every stitch.4 To cause this motion, the bars of both needles are attached to a. frame, L, which frame is gliven a lateral motion by an upright lever, I), fig. 1, which is operated by a cam on the back of the large cazn F. 'I

Figure 8 represents the back lof this cam from the line 11 11 ot iig. 1.

'Ihe side ofth'e cam F has an offset, as indicated in the figure.

The frame L is held in contact with the upper end of thisv lever P by a spring, marked Q, as seen in fig. 1.

-Figure 7 is aview of the otherside of the cam F, as seen from the line 3 3.

It is a bevel-gear wheel, which is driven by the wheel B, with which it engages, as seen in figs. 1 and 2. Rigidly attached .to theshaft of this wheel is a cam-whcel, marked S. This wheel stands in an inclined position, as seen in tig. 2, for the purpose of throwing itsl upper portion nearer the needles, as the hook which catches and draws thc thread, as well as the cams which actuate the feed of the machine, are attached to this wheel. Y l i A sectional top view of the table (under the upper needle) is seen in Figure 9, Sheet II.

The arrangement for holding the cloth to the table is seen in fig. 3, at T;

-Tlie cams on the wheel S, which operate the feed, also operate a hooltand slide, (seenin Figure 10,) which unthreads or draws the thread frornthe needles.

The feed-dogis shown at a', Figure 11, and consists of a short curved bar, pivoted to the. shank ot' the hook t, and workingbaekward and forward with said hook as the latter is operated by thevcam upon the wheel S The feeddog also works in a groovein the under side of the tableand is provided with a lug, u, projecting through the table, and upon whieh'the cloth rests. i y

The method of feeding up the cloth and operatingr the hook, and the action by which the thread is carried to the proper position for threading and unthreading, is seen more plainly in fig. 10, of which fig. 11 is a section through the lined- 4, and Figure 12 a section through the line 5 5. The' motion of the cloth, in being fed in, carries the thread into the open eye of the needle. y

o is a slide,'which is raised by the spring w, as shown in figs. 11 and`12, and depressed by the cam on the wheel S. v

This slide raises the thread, and holds it for the hook to draw the thread into the eye of the needle.

Figure 14 is a section throughfig. 9, at 6 G. l v

The hoolct is seen at Figures 15 and 16, attached to one of the cams on sect-ions of' the wheel S.

Figures 17 and18 are sectionsot` the'same wheel, showing another view of the cams.

In Figure 19, Sheet I, is seen a modification of the needle in two views.

In this ligure a slide is seen, which closes the opening in the eye of'the upper needle, which slide may be operated by any proper mechanical means to prevent the thread from slippping from the eye, should such a. provision be found necessary. These two views are marked fr g/,jmd y is a section of a' through the line o a. v

On Sheetv II, in red color, will be seen three perspective views of the stitch made by this machine, the thread being seen looped around thecord, andin the different positions which it assumes while the stitch is being made.

'The operation of forming a stitch is as follows: The thread, oi' the required length for the button-hole, is secured to the edge of the cloth, and its free end passed over the top` ot' the slide t', hanging beneath the table. The machine is now put in motion, and the lower needle-bar, in moving up through the medium of the cam C andarxn a, is turned by the rack and pinion in sucha manner as to bring its edge upon the same side, and in a line witn the eye of the upper needle, which is moved down,simultaneously with the forward movement of the lower needle, under the influence of the cani G. The upper and lowerneedles are, at this stage, inthe slot, forming the button-hele. The upper needle is rotated to bring the eye into the position above described by means of the pin o and curved slot in the needle-bar. As this movement is completed, the cam upon the wheel S rctracts lthe sliding-hook t, through which the thread has been passed, drawing the thread into the eyes of v,both needles.l The cloth at the'salne time being fed-forward parallel to the slide, completes the threading.

The needles :are new receded from each other by the arms II a, and cams C G,Iand are turned in opposite directions by pin o', and rack and pinion D the upper needle, carrying the 'thread in the form of a loop,

one quarter round, and the lower Aneedle carrying the saule three quarters round, to form a loop for the passage of the upper needle and loop in its second descent. When the needles are farthest apart, the frame L is moved forward by the cam upon the back of the cam F, and the lever I, carrying both needles by the edge of the'cloth, and freeing the upper needle-bar from the pin o', the needles are again approached towards each other by the mechanism described, but this time without rotation, the upper needle carrying its loop through the edge lof the cloth, and through th'e loop-in the lower needle.

In again receding, the upper needle leaves the loop suiiiciently loose below the cloth to be caught by the hook t upon the wheel S, which disengages it from the eye of said needle, drawing the thread against the loop through which it has passed, and removing the loop from the lower needle. The wheel continuing to revolve, the hook t carries the thread in the forni of a loop over the top of the slide U, which is depressed for that purpose by means ot a cam upon the wheel S, beneath the hook.

As soon as this cam has passed over the slide, the latter is thrown back to its place by the spring zo, holding the thread in positio'xrfor another stitch. The wheel, continuing to revolve, clears the hook from thel loop as soon as it reaches the end'o't` the thread, which, it will be remembered, is only suiliciently long to work a huttenholc, or the ordinary length employedvin a hand-needle.

Having thus described lny invention, I claim as new,and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. The adjustable frame L, carrying the reciprocating needle-bars, in combination with the lever I), und cam upon the shaft A, substantially ,as described for the purpose specilied.

2. The combination ofthe lower needle-bar with the right-angular spring-arm a and cam C, substantially as described for the purposespeeied.

8. The combinationof thelower needle-ber, arm a, pinion b, `rack D, spring-arm E, and cam F, substantially as described 'for the purpose specified. i

4. The combination of the cam G, rod ll, arm J, upper needle-bar, having tbe curved slot, and the pin o7 substantially as described for the purpose specified. I

5.- '.lhe cam-wheel S and hook t', in combination with the spring-slide "u, spring-hook t, and upper and lower rotating needles, substantially as described for the purpose specified.

6. The slide v, adapted to raise and hold the thread in-a. button-hole-sewing machine during the formation of the stitel1,^substantially as described for the purpose specified.

7. The method, herein described, of threading the needle, by means of the spring-hook and the movement of the cloth. e

HENRYE. REYNOLDS..

Witnesses:

WILLIAM BRADFORD, ALBERT S. PEARSE. 

